Author: RJ Allen

We Need to Talk About Richie Burke

Posted on by RJ Allen

We need to talk about Richie Burke.

The Washington Spirit, a team that finished with just 11 points in all of 2018, are sitting at the top of the NWSL standings right now with 16 points.

You’d expect that accomplishment to send a wave of praise toward coach Richie Burke and the Washington players, but what we’ve actually seen is more of a ripple.

This winter, the parent of a former youth player at FC Virginia alleged that Burke had used abusive and homophobic language when he was coaching there. Stephanie Yang wrote about the allegations for Black and Red United back in February.

It’s hard enough to get any accountability when it comes to actual crimes, with even sexual or physical violence sometimes treated like an inconvenience more than anything else. When it comes to something as “harmless” as using abusive and homophobic language people are often willing to treat it as nothing more than a coach being a hard ass.

But the allegations are actually quite simple. A man in a position of power over young men used abusive and homophobic language as a way to degrade and humiliate them. This display of anger and aggression should be as unacceptable as a coach putting their hands on a player. The coach in question should not pass go and should not get put in charge of professional level players after the allegations are swept back under the rug. 

The most striking part of this isn’t that someone in a position of power is alleged to have used abusive and homophobic language. The most striking part is the reaction to those allegations. Since the story came out, the NWSL and the Washington Spirit have done, well, nothing.  

There has been no publicly announced formal investigation that would allow the league and the team look at what was alleged to have happened. There been no comments from Burke about soul-searching, not even a mealy-mouthed apology about ‘misunderstandings,’ no commitment to work on developing a better understanding of the issue. Nor do any of these parties seem all that concerned with severity of the allegations. 

No, there is just this comment given to John D. Halloran after Washington played Chicago.

 

And while we have heard nothing from the team or the league about the allegations, we do hear about Burke in the commentary on NWSL games, where fans and media are subjected to endless positive discussion. No context, no effort to even mention the allegation, just sugary sweet positivity that claws at the back of your throat.

Fans deserve better than this. They deserve consistent, committed announcers who understand the league, the storylines and the on and off the field happenings, and who aren’t afraid to discuss the good and the bad. Something more measured instead of that cloying sweet positivity could keep casual viewers in the loop, and lend some support to those who have serious concerns about these allegations.

On one hand, what Burke is accused to doing is deeply disturbing. But on the other hand . . . you know what? Sometimes there isn’t an other hand.

Richie Burke has apparently made the Washington Spirit play better soccer. But that doesn’t mean anything where it comes to the issue of abuse.

The NWSL and Washington have gotten this all wrong.  They should have taken serious action months ago, done their due diligence, and seriously looked into these issues. If Burke is innocent, there should have been a real effort to figure it out. And if he isn’t innocent, there should be repercussions. A fine and suspension would not be out of line. Maybe more. It doesn’t matter that it was a former job. Sam Johnson had to sit out a game for the Utah Royals because of an Australia W-League red card. Why shouldn’t Burke be held to at least that standard?

The NWSL and Washington want to sweep this under the rug. But it’s not going to go away, and someone has to address the Burke issue. The media isn’t going to stop asking about him, and Washington doesn’t look like they are going to be out of the headlines anytime soon.

The Game Changers: Week Seven

Posted on by RJ Allen

The Game Changers is a weekly series looking at the most important results each week. Each section will look at one team and how its win, loss, or draw impacts the season.

We are nearly two months into the 2019 NWSL season, and things are not taking shape the way many of us expected them to. With six or seven games come and gone for each team, it is the Utah Royals who sit in the No. 1 spot in the standings, tied with the No. 2 Washington Spirit in points but leading on goal differential. The North Carolina Courage, who were unstoppable in 2018, have dropped to the No. 7 spot with just nine points in seven matches. It’s still early enough in the season that most teams are within five points of each other, with only Sky Blue and the Orlando Pride falling far behind the rest of the pack, but the standings are eye-catching for sure. Here is a full breakdown of this week’s results: 

Sky Blue vs. Portland Thorns (0-1)

Utah Royals vs. Orlando Pride (2-0)

Chicago Red Stars vs. Washington Spirit (0-2)

Reign FC vs. North Carolina Courage (2-1)

The Washington Spirit earn another win against a difficult opponent

The Washington Spirit have had a surprisingly strong start to the 2019 campaign. Under new head coach Richie Burke, the Spirit are 4-1-1. They added on another 2-0 win this weekend over the Chicago Red Stars, who had won their last two matches going into this game. Despite being on the road and not having goal-scorer Cheyna Matthews, who joined the Jamaica national team ahead of their first World Cup appearance, the Spirit still managed to knock two back and earn three points. 

The first goal, admittedly, was a scramble at the goal line that ended up counting as a Yuki Nagasato own goal. In the 63rd minute, Ashley Hatch took advantage of a favorable deflection to find the back of the net again for the Spirit, giving them the 2-0 lead. Of course, the Spirit’s defense– led by goalkeeper Aubrey Bledsoe– put on a stellar performance, facing 20 shots and requiring seven saves. Still, Washington’s offense did their part to earn the points and the Spirit are cruising along in a close second place. Can they keep this momentum going? 

Reign FC earn their second straight victory. 

Two weeks ago, Reign FC hadn’t earned their first win of 2019 and were struggling with just three points in four games. But in the last two weeks, they’ve earned back-to-back wins and breathed some life into their struggling squad. This week, they were able to hand the North Carolina Courage their second defeat of the season. We’ll focus on the Courage’s perspective in a moment, but for now, let’s keep our eyes on Reign FC.

Jess Fishlock returned to the lineup for Reign FC this week, inevitably having a massive impact after she missed the beginning of the season on loan to Olympique Lyon. She had four shots in the game and played a full 90 minutes. But the goals went to Bethany Balcer, who opened up scoring with a powerful header in the first fifteen minutes, and Shea Groom, who capitalized on a mistake from Katelyn Rowland towards the end of the match and solidified the win for the Reign. After a slow start to the season, we might be starting to see Reign FC in the form they’re hoping for.

 North Carolina Courage drop more points.

Perhaps we are all too adjusted to seeing North Carolina dominated painlessly, but there recent string of results is starting to become concerning. After earning their first loss since 2018 two weeks ago against the Chicago Red Stars, the Courage earned another loss on the road this weekend. They have now earned just two points in their last four matches, and sit in the No. 7 spot in the table. 

Surely, losing their national team players is having an impact on this team. But that might not be the only force at work here. The team still had Abby Erceg, who scored the lone goal for the Courage, but were unable to buckle down on the defensive end. Rowland made a careless mistake that may have cost her team points, and Lynn Williams has had even more trouble finishing than usual. Is it time to be worried about this North Carolina team? I think they’re still one of the top teams in the league. But a month ago, I would have said they were untouchable. The inevitable shift seems like it may have begun.

 

Route Two Soccer: Fishlock Returns and Immediately Makes the Difference

Posted on by RJ Allen

For most teams, the World Cup means losing your key players. And Reign FC are no exception. They’ll spend the next month or two missing the likes of Megan Rapinoe, Jodie Taylor, and Allie Long. But they’re also the rare team for whom this month means getting a key player back. With the end of the European club soccer calendar, Jess Fishlock’s loan period to Olympique Lyonnais has concluded, and she’s now back home in the pacific northwest.

Given the travel, and the potential lingering effects of her work to help Lyon take home a fourth consecutive Champions League title, there was some speculation about whether she would even play this weekend. And according to head coach Vlatko Andonovski, even after they knew she would start there were serious plans to limit her minutes. But as the saying goes: the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry when dragons get involved.

Because Fishlock just made too big a difference, and the Reign desperately needed her out there to see the game out. Her effect could be felt at three different levels, all of which are important in their own way.

The first is the simplest: her technical ability is top-notch, and helped solidify a Reign midfield that has looked shockingly weak for much of the season. Fishlock wasn’t even especially sharp by her lofty standards, but all the key features were there: her coolness in possession, her incisive passing, and her ability to generate space to receive the ball and relieve teammates under pressure. Having a dynamo in the midfield will go a long way to get the ship back on track.

Fishlock’s second contribution was tactical. Here, things were a tad surprising, with Andonovski choosing to bring her in as a #10 at the tip of the central midfield triangle, rather than in a more holding role. At times, she was really playing as more of a second striker than anything else.

The more obvious move might have been to leave Fishlock in a box-to-box role, leaving Bev Yanez at the top of the midfield. Yanez has always been more of a striker-turned-midfielder than anything else. But as Andonovski noted after the game, she’s also a sponge for training, and has made big strides in her tactical awareness. She also, for whatever reason, has struggled to impose herself on games in the forward attacking role this season. But freed from some of those responsibilities, she had her best game of 2019, while Fishlock ran the show in front of her.

We’ve grown used to fantastical things from Fishlock, but it’s worth taking a moment to reflect on just how difficult it is to slide so easily into what is effectively a brand new attacking unit. Before Monday’s game, she had played zero total minutes with the entire front three. And that front three was also all playing together for the first time. With the departure of Jodie Taylor, Bethany Balcer slotted into the central position, allowing Darian Jenkins and Shea Groom to fan out on either side. There is boatloads of talent in that trio, but no one would have been surprised if it hadn’t quite gelled. But from the first minute, the Reign looked deadly, and Fishlock played a major role in binding all the pieces together. You could see her directing runs, and could hear her calling out directions—every bit the player-manager that we saw from her a couple winters ago in Australia.

This was critically important in the first half, when the Reign took the game directly to North Carolina, turning the tables a bit on last year’s champions by pressing hard and fast to disrupt play. It worked wonderfully, and a huge part of that is due to Fishlock’s directions. All too often, pressing in the NWSL is really more a matter of ball-chasing. But the Reign put on a clinic, with waves of pressure challenging the ball-carrier and closing down all her passing options. That’s obviously something that happens at the team level, but Fishlock was a critical piece of making it work.

Her third contribution to the team was psychological. It’s no surprise that a Vlatko Andonovski team played with confidence, but there’s still something impressive about taking on a team as good as North Carolina (even in their weakened form) and not backing down an inch. That’s what the Reign did in the first half, and it sure can’t have hurt to have a player like Fishlock to keep everyone on the same page. Then, during those critical twenty minutes in the middle of the second half—when NC often tear apart the opposition—the Reign bent but never broke. They even managed to produce the occasional chance of their own, with Groom pouncing on a defensive mistake to put her team up 2-0. While things did get a little nervy in the final minutes, the Reign held on to see out a much-needed win.

This wasn’t Fishlock’s best game, or really anywhere close. She understandably looked tired, and occasionally struggled with her touch. She missed a couple chances to split the defense. She was dispossessed more than you’d expect. But even accounting for all that, it was a critical intervention, and a demonstration of just how badly the Reign have missed her.

There were many interesting stories from this game—the debut of Casey Murphy in goal, the growing excitement surrounding Bethany Balcer, Shea Groom breaking her goal-scoring drought, a revitalized performance from Bev Yanez, rock-solid defending from Megan Oyster, and on and on. But intermixed with each of those stories is the return of Fishlock. A great player who makes everyone else around her play great. For the Reign and for neutrals, it’s great to have her back. For fans of other teams, not so much.

Will Tobin Heath Really Play Outside Back In France?

Posted on by RJ Allen

Will Jill Ellis play Tobin Heath as an outside back in France? 

For a while on Sunday afternoon, as the USWNT took on Mexico, that’s exactly where she was. Though it was more standing there than playing there. And as I watched, the thought rolled through my mind: is this really going to happen?

This isn’t the only question around this team. With the US on their way to France, there still are plenty of lingering issues. Part of that is because the team hasn’t played a truly competitive match since March. So we’ve seen plenty of games, but none that really told us key things. So we’re still left wondering who will be on the pitch, who won’t, and what that means for the fate of the team.

And thinking about Heath as a potential fullback gets me thinking more broadly about the dichotomy between true depth and the illusion of depth. 

If you want to see true depth, look to the midfield. Sam Mewis, Morgan Brian, Julie Ertz, Lindsey Horan, Rose Lavelle and Allie Long provide as deep a pool in the middle of the park as a coach could want. While Horan is the presumed starter, Mewis is a unique talent that is able to step in and work with just about any pairing Ellis might ask of her. Ertz can play just about anywhere with expert skill. And seeing Lavelle in person with the ball is a sight to behold. The way she reads the game and manages to get defenders befuddled as she moves forward on the pitch is a thing of beauty.

Sure there are questions on if Brian is healthy enough or if Allie Long will be able to use her particular skill set at an effective level for the national team. But most of the questions around the midfield are due to an overabundance of talent.

Contrast this with the outside back position. You have Kelley O’Hara and Crystal Dunn as the starters. But in the post game mixed zone Dunn called herself an “attacking minded player” nearly a dozen times while answering questions from the assembled media. She’s willing to do the job, but is hardly a true defender. So if you start with Dunn, and want to make a change (reasonable on a day when it was so hot you could fry an egg on the pavement outside Red Bull Arena), it makes a certain kind of sense to swap in Tobin Heath. But the logic here is an extremely twisted kind.

I didn’t know in the year 2019 I needed to say this, but Tobin Heath is not an outside back. And watching her in person only confirmed that. In the first half she was comfortable and energetic. All that faded once she was moved to the left back spot. She didn’t look like she was particularly interested in defending–taking any chance to go forward–but those movements were aimless and uncomfortable. And why wouldn’t they be? Ellis suggested in her post game remarks that the difference between left back and left forward in this rotation wasn’t all that great. But there’s actually a big difference. You can’t just swap players interchangeably and expect it to work. The responsibilities are different, the angles are different, the way you get involved in play is different.

So why did Ellis try it? Does it maybe tell us just how little she actually wants to rely on Ali Krieger – who made the roster but still faces real worries about how she’ll perform if called upon? Or is it just some practice for a desperation move in a game where they’ve used all their subs? It’s hard to say.

Ultimately, only time will tell if this effort to force wingers in as outside backs will burn the Americans. If they win the 2019 Women’s World Cup it may be just a forgotten bit of commentary in 20 years. 

The View from the Sideline: USWNT vs Mexico

Posted on by RJ Allen

Carl Gulbish caught the action in the as Mexico took on the USWNT. This was the USWNT’s last game before heading to the Women’s World Cup.

 

May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 1st half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)
May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 2nd half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)
May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 1st half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)
May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 1st half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)
May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 1st half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)
May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 1st half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)
May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 2nd half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)
May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 2nd half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)
May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 2nd half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)
May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 2nd half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)
May 26, 2019 – Harrison, NJ, United States of America – 2nd half of the game between USA and Mexico at the Red Bulls Arena – Harrison, NJ. (Credit Image: Carl Gulbish/BacklineSoccer)

Why Everyone Should Go See The Spirit At Audi Field

Posted on by RJ Allen

On Thursday, I received an email from the Washington Spirit announcing that tickets are on sale for the two matches they will play at Audi Field in downtown D.C.—one against the Orlando Pride on August 24th and one against Reign FC on September 14th.

I want to go to these games. And I think everyone else should too.

We should not underestimate what a massive opportunity these matches represent for the Spirit. The team usually plays at Maryland SoccerPlex in Boyds, Maryland. On public transportation, it would take close to two hours to get there from downtown D.C. By car, that time gets cut down to 55 minutes. The reality is that the team isn’t very accessible to a lot of people that live in the D.C. area.

When we look at attendance troubles across the league, accessibility is an issue. Cost is another factor. For tickets to the Spirit’s recent home match against the Portland Thorns, the lowest cost ticket in the stands was $25. That’s not a ridiculous price, but when you factor in the commute, it’s out of reach for most people. They might be willing to pay $25 or $50 bucks to go watch a game at a professional soccer stadium downtown, but not at a recreational field in the suburbs.

I don’t know what kind of conversations are going on between the Washington Spirit and D.C. United with regards to Audi Field. But the Spirit should be pushing to move there full time. The move would lift the profile of D.C. soccer, and would certainly help push the Spirit in the direction of growth that the NWSL is looking for. I can’t guarantee that people will come to Spirit games in the same numbers that they come to D.C. United games. But I do know that playing at the Maryland SoccerPlex is a dead end, with little room for expanding the fan base or the attendance.

If NWSL wants to get casual sports fans, it needs to be accessible. Right now, the Spirit are not. Last year, the Spirit attracted nearly 8,000 fans when they played the Portland Thorns in late August. They will have the opportunity to prove that they can draw those numbers again or maybe even more fans this time around. With good numbers, who knows where talks could lead.

We need to support the Washington Spirit. If we want a women’s soccer franchise in the District, we need to show up for them. I’m going to go to at least one of these games, and I hope everyone else does too. It could be just the spark this organization needs.

The Game Changers: Week Six

Posted on by RJ Allen

The Game Changers is a weekly series looking at the most important results each week. Each section will look at one team and how its win, loss, or draw impacts the season.

Another week has gone by in the NWSL, and things are getting interesting. The Chicago Red Stars currently sit in the No. 1 spot in the table with six games under their belt and an impressive 3-1-2 start to the season. It’s not surprising that the Red Stars are currently No. 1, but the other teams rounding out the top four are a bit more shocking: the Utah Royals, the Houston Dash, and the Washington Spirit, who all have ten points. Two teams– Orlando Pride and Sky Blue FC– have yet to win a game this season, while Reign FC earned their first win over the weekend against New Jersey. Here are the results from this weekend:

Reign FC vs. Sky Blue (2-1)

Washington Spirit vs. Portland Thorns (3-1)

North Carolina Courage vs. Utah Royals (1-1)

Houston Dash vs. Chicago Red Stars (1-2)

The Washington Spirit defeat the Portland Thorns

One of the more surprising results over the weekend was a 3-1 victory for the Washington Spirit over the Portland Thorns at Maryland SoccerPlex. There are many factors to be considered here, including many international players absent and Portland’s never-ending road trip (they haven’t played at home in 2019 and won’t until their stadium renovations are complete). But the win lifts the Spirit to 10 points in five games and a 3-1-1 record. Under a new (questionable) head coach, that’s impressive. 

And the Spirit are finding success without Rose Lavelle and Mallory Pugh, who are both away on international duty. They have plenty of struggles on the field, but they are finding a way to score points and win games not only against teams like Sky Blue, but also against teams like Portland. Things are shaping up under Head Coach Richie Burke, and the Spirit have proven that they could be a dark horse this season.

North Carolina Courage drop more points at home.

After being handed their first loss since June 2018 last week, the Courage dropped more points when they returned home this weekend to face the Utah Royals. North Carolina out shot Utah 18-2, with three shots on goal compared to Utah’s won. But in the end, North Carolina couldn’t finish and they split the points with the Royals at home. 

North Carolina fans should not be too worried. The Courage are still one of, if not the best, team in the league. They’re dangerous with or without their internationals, and I absolutely expect them to be a playoff team. But they’re looking much more vulnerable in 2019 than they did in 2018, with a 2-1-3 record through six games. Is it possible that teams are starting to figure them out? 

The Houston Dash lose to the Chicago Red Stars. 

The Houston Dash have been completely unpredictable this season, and Saturday’s match against the Chicago Red Stars was no exception. There is no shame in losing to the Red Stars, who are playing one of the best games in the league right now. It was the Dash’s first glance at life without Rachel Daly and it was… okay. They got 9 shots to the Red Stars 13 and possession was nearly even. Sam Kerr has proven unstoppable and her brace is what ultimately won the match for her team.

The Dash are 3-2-1 this season. While they sit in the No. 3 spot right now, they still feel like a middle-of-the-pack team. Every time it feels like they’re breaking out– like getting that win last week over the undefeated Utah Royals– they’ll have a game like this and we’ll question again whether they really have what it takes. There is a lot of season left to go, but they’ll be missing these points at the end of the year.